My heart is with salmon. It always has been. They are more than a commodity to be bought and sold. Their strength and power—and their significance as a sustainer of life—makes these species remarkable beings.
My passion for salmonids began on the west coast where I learned about their cultural significance to the Yakama, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Nez Perce and Coast Salish Peoples. I remember holding a massive chinook, trying to help it over a dam, and thinking these are some really strong fish. When I participated in the Snake River Flotilla, I witnessed firsthand the effects of salmon loss and how Indigenous resilience paralleled bringing salmon back to a free-flowing river. During that flotilla I also learned how salmon was the first food to sacrifice itself for the people.
Arctic char are the direct relatives of pacific salmonids, just as feisty and just as important for food security. Across Inuit Nunangat, or the Inuit homeland, Arctic char is a cultural staple. As one of three essential dietary staples it occupies a central place in Inuit culture and identity. Due to a changing climate, caribou numbers have declined. Additionally, overfishing across the province of Newfoundland and Labrador have resulted in federal regulations closing Nunatsiavut salmon and cod fisheries for decades. Both factors have increased the reliance on char for sustenance.
Caption: The Inuit Cycle of Seasons and Food showing peak harvests of char occur in the summer months (Credit: Morgan Bentham Teacher as a Researcher in Environment, General, Geography, History, April 9, 2016. https://leapintothevoidwithme.wordpress.com/2016/04/09/the-cycle-of-seasons/).
Nunatsiavut is an Inuit-governed territory established in 2005 via The Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. This agreement allocated 100% of Arctic regional char quota licences to the Nunatsiavut Government. On a place-based level, the Arctic char fishery is knowledge rich, with a local history of documenting char migrations since time immemorial. However, due to a combination of biological complexity, and lack of broad-scale federal monitoring support, estimates of the abundance of Arctic char currently residing in Nunatsiavut are unclear, and how many char will exist for future generations is also an unknown. For these reasons, the fishery has been historically categorized by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) as “data deficient.” This population uncertainty is a major concern for food security.
My PhD project focuses on partnering with local governance and fishers’ organizations (the Torngat Wildlife, Plants and Fisheries Secretariat, and Torngat Fish Producers Co-Operative), harvesters and the Nunatsiavut Government to gather a holistic picture of char estimates in support of food security.
Caption: Left, a broad map outlining the location of Nunatsiavut in relation to other Inuit territories (Oceans North, Inuit Nunangat, 2022). Right, a close up of the five communities of Nunatsiavut in relation to neighboring provinces (Tourism Nunatsiavut, “Travel to Nunatsiavut,” 2020).
My understanding of the role Arctic char play as cultural staples that support Inuit food security was supported through my experience last summer at the Arctic char monitoring station on the Fraser River, near the community of Nain. This monitoring station has been in operation since 2020 to monitor char numbers and support food security. It is run by the Torngat Wildlife, Plants and Fisheries Secretariat with support from the Nunatsiavut Government and DFO. As the fish migrate from the north to south, returning from the ocean back to freshwater, the char that supply the Fraser River/Nain stock pass through the same narrow channel where the Advanced Resolution Imaging Sonar (ARIS) camera, and counting fence record their movement.
Caption: A zoomed out picture of my location (Left Credit: find my iphone Dylan Seidler) compared to a detailed map of the counting fence in relation to Nain, Nunatsiavut (Right Credit: Shawn Rivoire, Torngat Wildlife Plants and Fisheries Secretariat, 2022).
To reach the mouth of the river where the ARIS system was assembled, I boarded a small boat in Nain, the northernmost community of Nunatsiavut. I was accompanied by a bear guard and his husky Rocky, along with members of the Torngat Wildlife Plants and Fisheries Secretariat. We traveled 45 km Northwest of Nain, a journey that took nearly 3 hours. When we reached the river, we took a smaller boat to reach the research camp. The site featured three bear proof domes, two designed for shelter and a third with a working kitchen powered by a generator.
Caption: Pictures of the counting fence taken last summer. Left: a wide view of the channel, Right: the fence structure designed to narrow the channel for migrating fish. (Credit: Dylan Seidler)
Caption: Our dome shelter. These are bear-proof and were flown in by helicopter in 2020. (Credit: Dylan Seidler)
Caption: Dylan and Rocky (assistant bear guard) on the boat into the Fraser River station. (Credit: Dylan Seidler)
My role at the station was to help analyze the ARIS data and ensure that the computer’s connection to the sonar remained functional. I would check the counting fence daily to make sure the channel’s camera was recording properly. I would also record tide levels, tide patterns and weather. The image signal detected by the sonar would be recorded on the computer in 15-minute increments. Following some processing, the analyzed videos would indicate counts for the number of char that had passed through the fish counter. Watching the screen, I could see the fish appear as white lines, moving in real time. When a seal made its way into the river, the char moved quickly in the opposite direction.
Caption: Dylan in front of the ARIS computer (left) and a close up of the screen (right). The white dots are filtered out so only the shapes of the fish remain in the image. (Credit: Dylan Seidler)
My time at the char monitoring station gave me a first-hand experience with char. My first time fishing for char I felt a massive tug on the line and as I reeled the fish in it broke my fishing rod in half. In that moment I knew these fish have the resiliency and fighting spirit that only salmonids can have. I also learned how to fillet the fish I caught.
Caption: Dylan’s first char ever fished (left and her first attempt at filleting the fish (right). The right image also shows eggs which can be pan fried and consumed. (credit: Dylan Seidler)
During my time at the station, we would prepare char in a variety of different ways. One method (seen in the left) was smoking the fish for eight hours, in which sod from the blackberries was used to provide a sweet flavor. I also ate char oven baked with onions and pan fried. My favorite method was pitsik, or dried char, which I learned to prepare: fillet the fish, cut into strips with the skin on, slate the fish and dry for three days. This would leave the char with a delicious jerky texture.
Caption: A collage of all of the ways char is consumed: smoked fish (left), pitsik (upper right) and baked (lower right). (Credit: Dylan Seidler)
Consuming char in these various ways, and relying on it for my sustenance and survival, gave me a deeper appreciation for the char’s role in supporting food security. While at the Fraser I also took in the sights and sounds of the beautiful place and felt grateful to be invited as a guest on these lands in Nunatsiavut. Char are a salmonid—a caretaker and sustainer of life. This experience in the field reinforced the importance of char in relation to Inuit food security and Inuit livelihoods. I am grateful to all of the people who have taken the time to share their knowledge and stories about char with me and look forward to continuing my work and learning more about char populations in Nunatsiavut.
Caption: A photo of Rocky in the sunset showing the beauty of the Torngat Mountains in Nunatsiavut. (Credit: Dylan Seidler).
Note on Funding: As a member of the Sustainable Nunatsaivut Futures Project, a collaborative initiative focused on addressing the impacts of climate change on local communities by partnering with community members to share knowledge about effective ways to monitor, and manage, Arctic marine ecosystems, funding for travel to this station has been supported by the Ocean Frontiner Institute (OFI).
Additional References and Further Reading
Andrews, D. W., & Coffey, J. (2009). Current Knowledge and Future Research Needs of Atlantic Salmon and Arctic Charr in Northern Labrador. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Juliana- Coffey/publication/340849441_Current_Knowledge_and_Future_Research_Needs_of_Atlantic Salmon_and_Arctic_Char_in_Northern_Labrador/links/5ea0b0c6299bf143893ff4f8/Current-Knowledge-and-Future-Research-Needs-of-Atlantic-Salmon-and-Arctic-Char-in-Northern-Labrador.pdf
Alaska Fish and Game. (2021). Arctic Char Species Profile, Alaska Department of Fish and Game. https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=arcticchar.printerfriendly
Beale, J., Dale, A., Snook, J., & Whalen. (2011). Nunatsiavut Arctic Char Workshop 2011. Torngat Wildlife, Plants and Fisheries Secretariat.
Beaumier, M. C., Ford, J. D., & Tagalik, S. (2014). The food security of Inuit women in Arviat,Nunavut: the role of socio-economic factors and climate change. Polar Record, 51(5), 550–559. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0032247414000618
Bilous, M., & Dunmall, K. M. (2020). Atlantic salmon in the Canadian Arctic: potential dispersal, establishment, and interaction with Arctic char. Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 30(3), 463–483. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11160-020-09610-2
Bird, L. (2021, January 18). Labrador’s Arctic char vulnerable to climate change, says new study. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/arctic-char-labrador-climate-change-study-1.5871390
Boudreau, S. & Fanning, L. (2016). Nunavut Fisheries Co-management and the Role of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement in Fisheries Management and Decision Making. Ocean Yearbook. 10.1163/9789004321595_009
Boutet , J.-S. (2016). Care, Cooperation and Activism, in Canada’s Northern Social Economy (p. Chapter 3: Torngat Fish Producers Co-Operative). University of Alberta Press. https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=sEmrDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA21&dq=arctic+char+monitoring+nunatsiavut+&ots=LmXKbirFlU&sig=uX5juL5XU99ZQAEpW_4EL8yT4XA#v=onepage&q&f=false
Bowers, R., Turner, G. N., Graham, I. D., Furgal, C., & Dubois, L. (2021). Improving food security for Labrador Inuit in Nunatsiavut, Labrador: A matter of health equity. Research Square.https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-1056651/v1
Cadman, R., Snook, J., & Bailey, M. (2022). Ten years of Inuit co-management: advancing research, resilience, and capacity in Nunatsiavut through fishery governance. Regional Environmental Change, 22(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-022-01983-3
Côté, D., Dempson, J. B., Piersiak, M. G., Layton, K. K. S., Roul, S. K., Laing, R., Angnatok, J., & Bradbury, I. (2021). Using movement, diet, and genetic analyses to understand Arctic charr responses to ecosystem change. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 673, 135–149. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13775
Coates, K. S., & Broderstad, E. G. (2020). Indigenous Peoples of the Arctic: Re-taking Control of the Far North. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-20557-7_2?error=cookies_not_supported&code=9d3c3f28-2b6f-4058-87bd-7d64ad8b240c
Dempson, (2001). North Labrador Arctic Char. DFO. https://waves-vagues.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/library-bibliotheque/256492.pdf
Dempson, J. B., & Shears, M. (1985). Life history of anadromous arctic charr, Salvelinus alpinus, in the Fraser River, northern Labrador. DFO. 10.1139/z85-048
Dempson, J. B., & Shears, M. (2004). Review and Status of North Labrador Arctic Charr, Salvelinus Alpinus. DFO. https://waves-vagues.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/library-bibliotheque/284126.pdf.
Dempson, J. B., & Shears, M. (2001). Status of North Labrador Arctic Charr Stocks, 2000. DFO. https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2015/mpo- dfo/Fs70-5-2001-029-eng.pdf
Department of Land and Natural Resources. (2021, November 15). Nunatsiavut Government’s Commercial Fishery Designation Policy. Nunatsiavut Government Home. https://nunatsiavut.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/NG-Commercial-Fishery-Designation-Policy.pdf
DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada). (2001). North Labrador Arctic Charr. DFO Science Stock Status Report D2-07. https://waves-vagues.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/Library/256492.pdf
DFO: Department of Fisheries and Oceans. (2015). Cambridge Bay Arctic Char Commercial Fishery (Summary Version) - Effective 2014. https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/ifmp-gmp/arctic-char-omble-chev/arctic-char-omble-chev-eng.html
DFO: Communications and Marketing Branch. (2016). Community-Based Monitoring and Research - Science.gc.ca. DFO: Department of Fisheries and Oceans. https://science.gc.ca/eic/site/063.nsf/eng/h_F2F84BB1.html
DFO: Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. (2018). Commercial fisheries for Arctic char. https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/commercial-commerciale/atl-arc/arctic-char-omble-chevalier-eng.html
Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Arctic char in a rapidly changing North. (2023, August 10). Canada.ca. https://www.canada.ca/en/polar-knowledge/publications/aqhaliat/volume-4/arctic-char.html
Desantis, R. (2008). Vulnerability and adaptation to environmental conditions in Hopedale, Nunatsiavut. The Atrium. https://atrium.lib.uoguelph.ca/xmlui/handle/10214/20621?show=full
Evans, M. S., Muir, D. C. G., Keating, J., & Wang, X. (2015). Anadromous char as an alternate food choice to marine animals: A synthesis of Hg concentrations, population features and other influencing factors. Science of the Total Environment, 509-510, 175–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.10.074
Falardeau, M., Bennett, E. M., Else, B., Fisk, A., Mundy, C. J., Choy, E. S., Ahmed, M. M. M., Harris, L. N., & Moore, J.-S. (2022). Biophysical indicators and Indigenous and Local Knowledge reveal climatic and ecological shifts with implications for Arctic Char fisheries. Global Environmental Change, 74, 102469. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2022.102469
Ford, J. D., Bolton, K. C., Shirley, J., Pearce T., Tremblay, M., & Westlake, M. (2012). Research on the Human Dimensions of Climate Change in Nunavut, Nunavik, and Nunatsiavut: A Literature Review and Gap Analysis. Arctic, 65(3), 289–304. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41758936
Government of Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Communications Branch. (2014, March
11). Arctic Char. https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/sustainable-durable/fisheries-peches/char-omble-eng.html
Harris, L.N., Cahill, C.L., Jivan, T., Zhu, X., and Tallman, R.F. (2021). Updated Stock Status of Commercially Harvested Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) from the Jayko and Halokvik rivers, Nunavut: A summary of harvest, catch-effort, and biological information. DFO. Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Res. Doc. 2019/062., 97
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. (in press). National Inuit Strategy on Research. Inuit Tapiriit
Kanatami. https://www.itk.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/ITK_NISR- Report_English_low_res.pdf
Kourantidou, M., Hoagland, P., & Bailey, M. (2022). Inuit Food Insecurity as a Consequence of Fragmented Marine Resource Management Policies? Emerging Lessons from Nunatsiavut. ARCTIC, 74(5), 40–55. https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic74372
Kourantidou, M., Jin, D., & Solow, A. R. (2022). Bioeconomic analysis accounting for environmental effects in data-poor fisheries: the northern Labrador Arctic char. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 79(1), 82–96. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2021-0077
Kourantidou, M., & Bailey, M. (n.d.). Monitoring food insecurity among Inuit: The Forgotten Pillar of Fisheries Management. Arctic Observing Summit. https://arcticobservingsummit.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/AOS2020_white_paper_short_statement_025.pdf
Kourantidou, M., Hoagland, P., Dale, A., & Bailey, M. (2021). Equitable Allocations in Northern Fisheries: Bridging the Divide for Labrador Inuit. Frontiers in Marine Science, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.590213
Kristofferson, A., & Berkes, F. (2005). Breaking Ice: Renewable Resource and Ocean Management in the Canadian North (Chapter 12: Adaptive Co-Management of Arctic Char in Nunavut Territory ed.). University of Calgary Press.
Gautier, L., Pirkle, C., Furgal, C., & Lucas, M. (2016). Assessment of the Implementation Fidelity of the Arctic Char Distribution Project in Nunavik, Quebec. Global Health, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2016-000093
Henderson, E. (2021, November 15). What Arctic Char Means to Inuit Nunangat. Inuit Art Foundation. https://www.inuitartfoundation.org/setcookie.aspx?ReturnUrl=iaq-online/what-arctic-char-means-to-inuit-nunangat
Hirsch, R., Furgal, C., Hackett, C., Sheldon, T., Bell, T., Angnatok, D., Winters, K., & Pamak, C. (2017). Going Off, Growing Strong: A program to enhance individual youth and community resilience in the face of change in Nain, Nunatsiavut. Études/Inuit/Studies, 40(1), 63–84. https://doi.org/10.7202/1040145ar
Indigenous Peoples of Canada. (2018, June 14). Wildlife. IPAC. https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/article/wildlife/
Laing, R., Muir, D., & Kirk, J. (2020, February 1). Community-Based Monitoring of Arctic Char in Nunatsiavut: Increasing Capacity, Building Knowledge. DFO: Department of Fisheries and Oceans. https://science.gc.ca/eic/site/063.nsf/eng/h_97916.html#2
Lehmann, J., Gaunt, J. L., & Rondón, M. A. (2006). Bio-char Sequestration in Terrestrial Ecosystems – A Review. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 11(2), 403–427. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-005-9006-5
Li, P., Coeverden de Groot, P., Sun, Z., & Lougheed, S. C. (2023). A new genomics tool for monitoring Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) populations in the Lower Northwest Passage, Nunavut. Fisheries Research, 258(258), 106523–106523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2022.106523 Northwest Territories Cumulative Impact Monitoring Program and Nunavut General
Mainguy, J., and Beaupre, L. (2021). Establishing a Benchmark Population Status for Arctic Char in the Five Mile Inlet System, Inukjuak, 2018. Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs, Direction de l’expertise sur la faune aquatique et Direction de la gestion de la faune du Nord-du-Québec, 32 p. Monitoring Plan. (2016). Nunavut General Monitoring Plan.
Nunatsiavut Government. (2021). Nunatsiavut Government. https://www.nunatsiavut.com
Nunatsiavut Group of Companies. (2016). Annual Report: Labrador Inuit Capital Strategy Trust.
Oceana. (2019, November 20). Arctic Char. Oceana Canada. https://oceana.ca/en/marine- life/arctic-char/
Plummer’s Arctic Lodges. (2018, February 19). Arctic Char: Salvelinus with Attitude - Plummer's Arctic Lodges. https://www.plummerslodges.com/arctic-char-salvelinus-with-attitude/
Procter, A. (2012). Settlement, Subsistence, and Change Among the Labrador Inuit (p. Chapter 8: Nunatsiavut Land Claims and the Politics of Inuit Wildlife Harvesting). University of Manitoba Press. https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=_oKwl0qFqqoC&oi=fnd&pg=PA189&dq=arctic+char+monitoring+nunatsiavut+&ots=YRU3vzg9XC&sig=KQLokwK77iI1oQkL9ppl8_w34nc#v=onepage&q&f=false
Schaible, J. (2019, December 1). Investigating the certifiability of Nunatsiavut’s commercial fisheries: The case of the Marine Stewardship Council. http://hdl.handle.net/10222/77791
Smart, J. (2019). Inuit Knowledge and Observations of Changes in Arctic Char (Salvelinus Alpinus) and Implications for Subsistence Livelihoods in Urukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada [Thesis]. https://unbc.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/unbc%3A59209/datastream/PDF/file.pdf
Snook, J., Cunsolo, A., Ford, J., Furgal, C., Jones-Bitton, A., & Harper, S. (2022). “Just because you have a land claim, that doesn’t mean everything’s going to fall in place”: An Inuit social struggle for fishery access and well being. Marine Policy, 140, 105071. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2022.105071
Snook, J. (2022). Monologue on co-management-led research. [Video]. Co-Management Commons. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ6hm5ia5JM
Snook, J., & Cunsolo, A. (2018). Co-Management Led Research and Sharing Space on a Pathway to Inuit Self-Determination and Research. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/328808144_Co-management_led_research_and_sharing_space_on_the_pathway_to_Inuit_self-determination_in_research
Tobias, T. (2009). Living Proof: The Essential Data-Collection Guide for Indigenous Use-and- Occupancy Map Surveys. https://ecotrust.ca/latest/research/living-proof-2000/
Torngat Fish Producers Co-operative | northern coalition. (n.d.). Northern coalition. https://www.northerncoalition.ca/copy-of-labrador-fishermen-s-union-
Tomaselli, M., Henri, D.A., Pangnirtung Hunters and Trappers Organization, Mayukalik hunters and Trappers Organization, Akayak, N., Kanayuk, D., Kanayuk, R., Pitsiulak, P., Wong, P., Richardson, E.S., an Dyck, M. (2022). Nunavut Inuit Qaujjmajatuqangit on the Health of the Davis Strait Polar Bear Population. Final Project Report. 117 pp. and appendices.
Torngat Wildlife Plants and Fisheries Secretariat. (2011). Nunatsiavut Arctic Char Workshop.
Torngat Wildlife Plants and Fisheries. https://www.torngatsecretariat.ca/home/files/cat2/2011-
nunatsiavut_arctic_char_workshop.pdf
Travel Nunavut. Species in Nunavut. (2023). Travel Nunavut. https://travelnunavut.ca/things-to-see-do/fishing/species-in-nunavut/
Ulrich, K., & Tallman, R. (1965). The Capelin invasion: evidence for a trophic shift in Arctic Char populations from the Cumberland Sound region, Nunavut, Canada. Arctic Science, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0001
University of Washington Libraries. (2021, August 11). Library Guides: Arctic & Northern Studies: Nunatsiavut (Newfoundland & Labrador). https://guides.lib.uw.edu/research/arctic/nunatsiavut
Vos, A. (2022). Stowing parachutes, strengthening science. Conservation Science and Practice, 4(5). https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12709
Way, E., Dale, A., & Snook, J. (2011). Aerial Survey of Selected Arctic Char Rivers in Northern Labrador. Torngat Wildlife, Plants and Fisheries Secretariat. https://torngatsecretariat.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/2011-aerial_survey_of_selected_arctic_char_rivers_in_northern_labrador.pdf
Weileder, M. (2019, July 30). Exploring Arctic Char and the Canadian Economy. ArcGIS StoryMaps. https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/88921bd925e74bf284c7634b91bdd274
Wesche, S., & Chan, H. M. (2010). Adapting to the Impacts of Climate Change on Food Security among Inuit in the Western Canadian Arctic. Ecohealth, 7(3), 361–373. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-010-0344-8
Wong, C., Ballegooyen, K., Ignace, L., Johnson, M. J., & Swanson, H. K. (2020). Towards reconciliation: 10 Calls to Action to natural scientists working in Canada. Facets, 5(1), 769–783. https://doi.org/10.1139/facets-2020-0005
Young, A., Tallman, R. F., & Ogle, D. H. (2021). Life history variation in Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) and the effects of diet and migration on the growth, condition, and body morphology of two Arctic charr populations in Cumberland Sound, Nunavut. Arctic Science. https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2019-0036
Comments